Disability NEWS – February 7, 2018

The February 7th Disability NEWS features FACT Oregon events for parents, a new feature coming in the NEWS, an educational/informational series concerning brain injuries, and other information/news for Portland’s disabilities community.

REAL announces Disability Culture and Justice Leadership Institute in the fall, applications are open now

The Disability Art & Culture Project’s (DACP) Reject Economic Ableist Limits (REAL) group has announced that the Disability Culture and Justice Leadership Institute will be held this fall and applications are now being taken. Applications may be downloaded from the DACP website and need to be submitted by the deadline of midnight, August 7, 2017.

The intent of the Institute is to build power in disability communities by bringing together disability leaders and creating a collective home where disability voices come first. The cross disability and intersectional Institute will be based on the principles of Disability Justice. It is envisioned that through this training, leaders will gain skills and knowledge in accessible organizing while everyone learns from each other. REAL is prioritizing the following identities to make up its cohort of leaders: 50 percent BIPOC, 50 percent Queer and 100 percent Disabled. Leaders will participate in interactive training sessions featuring:

disability culture and art

race, racism

intersectionality

using relational access and engagement of our bodies for liberation

capitalism

policy change

internalized oppression and truth-telling

Leaders will utilize these concepts to tackle real-world issues through action oriented community building and activism. The vision is to build a statewide Disability Justice Coalition to address institutional ableism and demand change. More information about the institute is available on its website.